Kimberly-Clark to Close 10 Plants, Reduce Workforce

Kimberly-Clark recently announced a global restructuring initiative in which the company expects to close or sell approximately 10 manufacturing facilities and reduce its workforce by 12 to 13 percent or 5,000 to 5,500 jobs. The restructuring is projected to generate annual cost savings of $500 to $550 million by the end of 2021.

The company has established a four-year cost savings target of more than $1.5 billion over the 2018 to 2021 time period from its ongoing Focused on Reducing Costs Everywhere (FORCE) program. The savings will be achieved through a continued focus on improving productivity at manufacturing facilities, optimizing raw material and product design costs, generating benefits from procurement activities, and improving distribution efficiencies.

"This is the biggest restructuring we have undertaken since the introduction of our global business plan in 2003, and it will make our company leaner, stronger and faster," said Thomas J. Falk, Kimberly-Clark's chairman and chief executive officer. "Although we expect market conditions will remain challenging in the near-term, we plan to deliver better results in 2018 while we begin to implement our new restructuring."

The restructuring program is expected to reduce Kimberly-Clark's structural cost base and enhance the company's flexibility to invest in its brands, growth initiatives and capabilities critical to delivering future growth. The program is also intended to make the company's overhead organization structure and manufacturing supply chain less complex and more efficient.